Selected Works

Non-Fiction

Haskell has produced a cultural map of not only her sister’s experience, but of gender roles and transsexualism in a world increasingly governed by notions of individual identity. My Brother My Sister is tender, honest, informed, and at times a humorous must-read for anyone who has ever struggled to discover who they really are.

Both historical survey and polemic, this book addresses the ways in which Hollywood, and cinema in general, has stereotyped women, but also points to the numerous examples of women subverting and challenging these stereotypes.

"A work of considerable depth and subtlety" (the New York Times) : In 1984 Haskell's husband, Andrew Sarris, came down with a mysterious and near-fatal illness. During his six-month hospitalization, she confronts not only the daily fear of his death but the realization of her own immense dependency.

Essays and interviews, ranging from interviews with Hollywood legends such as Gloria Swanson and John Wayne, to celebrations of the comic verve of Lucille Ball and Carol Burnett, to ruminations on literary figures such as Truman Capote and his Holly Golightly and Jane Austen's Emma.

Part of the Yale University Press American Icon series. An examination of how and why the book and movie have such a hold on the imagination. The character of Scarlett, bold, outrageous and yet forgivable, is unlike any heroine before or since.

Celebrated New York Times humor piece about Molly's husband's driving, men's driving in general, and the misconceptions about women drivers.

From Reverence to Rape: the Treatment of Women in the Movies Second Edition.

Controversial and genuinely original, "From Reverence to Rape" takes a tough look at sex and sexism in the movies and, in so doing, tells us as much about our culture and ourselves as it does about our films. For the treatment of women in the movies is more than a question of art or entertainment. If films have flattered and amused us, reflecting our most cherished beliefs, they have also distorted truth and reinforced delusions, perpetuating stereotypes and molding values. "From Reverence to Rape" is, then, both a portrait of our past and an interpretation of our present. In the force of its argument, it is perhaps also a signpost for the future.